Taken
by janedoeyes
Summary: Bella has lived with her Aunt Esme in her dilapidated house since her parents abandoned her there as a child. Now she fights for the lives of her family as they are caught up in a war between her aunt and the most powerful mob boss in the county, Aro Volturi. Could Edward, one of Aro's many associates, be her dark savior,or will she have to save her family alone?
1. Chapter 1

The hallways of our house are a dark brown. Usually my favorite color, I know brown as deep and rich; brown is life, soil of the earth, but this color is flat and lifeless. My aunt had painted over the once-yellow walls some time ago; it was the year all of the soul had left her eyes, and she seemed to spiral into a depression where no one could reach her, not even Alice, her own daughter.

I live in my dead cousin's bedroom now, since my parents went away to Europe and never returned for me. I don't even glance at the phone hanging on the kitchen wall anymore. They have the number, but I know it will never ring. My fingernails drag and catch on the projections of paint on the wall, reaching out to suck me in, as I trail my hand behind me. Down the staircase, winding and twisting around and around; my feet could barely keep up with me running down these stairs as a child, but I know it well now.

My aunt's door is closed; it is dark under the door, just like all typical days. She isn't asleep, I know that much. When I was younger I used to go outside and throw rocks at her window; I knew she couldn't be asleep because the light never came on no matter how true my aim was. She lives, breathes the dark. Only at night do I see her now, roaming the halls like she's lost something precious, or like she doesn't remember who she is.

Alice, my other cousin, the one that's alive, sits in the kitchen, reading and eating at the same time. A silver locket hangs around her neck, forever tied to her dead twin, a noose around her neck she didn't ask for, but doesn't complain about. She is remarkably good at taking care of herself. She is only twelve years old, however, and I'm sure she could use more of a motherly figure than I. Of course, I am only seventeen years now, and motherly instinct does not come naturally to me.

"Your night was long, I'm guessing." I state, trying to go for nonchalance but secretly worried about the deepening circles under her eyes.

"I had another one." She doesn't glance up at me either, not from her book, but I can feel the disturbance in her tone.

"What was this one about, Alice?" I lean forward onto the counter. Her book looks ancient and the title is in some foreign language; it's a genre that is too old for her, as always. The teachers had warned me there would be nothing suitable for her in the school library to read, since she is so advanced in her studies, and that I should take her to the local library to find her something more challenging.

"I dreamt that my sister came back." I wait for her to elaborate.

"And?"

"She came back and Mom woke up."

I am surprised for a moment. But then there's always something deeper going on in Alice's mind. "That doesn't sound too bad." I suggest cautiously.

"It wasn't." She states but I can see her eyes brimming tears over the top of her thick book.

I decide to leave it. Usually, if Alice wants to talk about it, she doesn't skirt around the topic.

She pedals her bike up and down the street while I watch from the porch, sitting with my legs splayed out in front of me, last rays of the sun stretching over my toes. I watch her with my hand above my eyes as she turns around and rides back, dirt billowing up behind her wheels. It is then that I see him, walking down our dirt road. He's all danger with his dark leather jacket and his eyes piercing through me, even from so far away. He looks out of place against the sunset. Like he shouldn't be here at all. Which he shouldn't.

I'm brimming with something, and I can't tell if the blush on my face is from anger or excitement. I look down at my toes again, just to get away from his stare. When I look back up Alice is stopped in the road and he's talking to her. One hand comes out of his pocket to gesture something to her and she shakes her head. Now I know I'm angry, and I stand up to walk over.

"I thought you came here to talk to me, Masen, not to my niece." I use his surname out of spite as I look straight through him, trying to discern what he is thinking, why he is really here. "Alice, go inside please." She looks at me, doesn't argue just takes her bike into the garage.

"I don't know what you think you're doing with my family, but I'm not going to let you tear it apart." I practically spit fire at him, ready to tackle him to the ground before he's even said anything.

He looks at me, hands in his pockets. He looks all calm but I can see the carton of cigarettes through his coat, and I watch him fidget nervously with it. He only smokes when he is stressed, or is trying to make a decision on something. Finally, he breaks down, and with the first puff he takes I can see the relief plainly on his face. He has been dreading this conversation all day.

He walks over to the porch without invitation, sits down on the steps and takes a long drag. He lets the smoke escape between his lips, drawn into a thin line. He looks back over his shoulder at what he knows is my aunt's room, and seeing it still dark as ever shakes his head.

"I give her a warning that her children could be taken away from her, and nothing changes. You would think that would be a wakeup call." I think he means to mutter only to himself, but I catch it, and I peer into his eyes again, really trying to discern what he came here for. I want to kiss him, but at the same time I want to slap him.

Those lips close around the end of the cigarette again and my breath hitches, but I look away.

"It's inappropriate for you to be here right now. You didn't even call to say you were coming."

He nods but doesn't saying anything, simply looking out into the yard. He's brooding over something; his eyes look lost but determined at the same time. And then he looks up at me again, and I'm lost too. He stands, breaking eye contact with me, and bends to put his cigarette out on in the tall grass, grinding it into the dirt slowly. Slowly, he raises back up, hesitant.

I stop breathing as his lips hover over mine for a moment, his hand on the nape of my neck. I think about pushing him away but I don't. Soft and warm and familiar, we are a collision of want and regrets and forbidden thoughts. Everything has built up to his breakdown, and I can feel the desperation seething beneath his lips as he crushes them to mine, his tobacco-sweet breath mingling with my own. I feel like I am exploding and being put back together all at once, remade. I clutch at his hair, his shoulders, his back.

"Fuck that's so good," he swears, pulling back only to start all over again.

I'm breathing so heavy I feel like I'm about to pass out. And then I let out a soft moan and he pulls away. I hope to god no one is around, and that Alice has lost interest about what's going on outside. I didn't expect Edward, bad boy with an iron will to give into his baser instincts today. His rough fingertips run up my arms, trail over my collarbone.

"What are you doing, Edward?" I try to sound angry but I'm breathless and my tone comes out softer than intended.

He looks into my eyes, evergreen and piercing, and maybe lost for the first time since I met him.

The door opens and I'm surprised by the sight of my aunt standing before me. I feel like I've never seen her before. Her face is gaunt, hollowed, her body too lean—like a starved winter tree. Her once beautiful strawberry-blonde hair is now withering from her head, but I look into her eyes and there is something new there that I haven't seen in months.

"My apologies, Mr. Masen, I didn't know you were to stop by today." Her voice crackles, a hollowed cocoon.

I give her a startled look but he doesn't seem surprised at all. Edward breaks eye contact with me, turning around to face her.

"I need to talk to you. Aro is getting impatient."

"Aro's impatience changes nothing." My aunt snaps.

"He'll take them away from you. Just like the first time. He'll leave you with nothing left, Esme." His voice is calm and steady, a hint of desperation roiling underneath the façade, just barely breaking the surface of his cold eyes. "He just wants to know where they are."

"Take who away? What are you talking about?" I extricate myself from his arms with a twist and a push, and move to stand beside my aunt, looking at her with concern. "Is Aro threatening us again, Esme?" I whisper, but she doesn't answer or even acknowledge my presence.

Edward has that lost look in his eyes again as he looks at me and I feel my eyebrows furrow as I look back at him. Alice is outside again and I feel her wrap her arms around my waist though I do not turn my gaze to her.

"Go inside, girls." The command comes from my aunt, and though I see storm clouds gather inside of Edward's eyes, he does not protest to this.

I start to object, but Alice's arms squeeze even tighter around me, and I stop and turn my head to her.

She appears calm as she glances back and forth between her mother and Edward, but I know better. My aunt Esme's rare appearances usually have a profound effect on her, and it can take her days to go back to her normal routine. I sigh and slip her arms from around me with little effort, and then take her hand as I walk inside with her.

I do not glance back at the pair on the porch, though I wish to.


	2. Chapter 2

**Since Esme is Bella's aunt, Alice would actually be her cousin. I made sure to correct my mistake, sorry for the confusion!**

 **Thank you for reviewing!**

"Is he still watching?" My aunt questions me. I peel the curtains back and my heart leaps into my throat when I spy Edward across the road, looking up at the house.

"Yes." I murmur. My aunt sighs lightly, barely loud enough to catch, and goes back to chopping vegetables. Alice is tense in her chair at the table, not daring to take her eyes off of her mother, while I try to relax my position against the counter, crossing my ankles in front of me as I watch her work around the kitchen.

Aunt Esme is cooking dinner like everything is normal, like the old days. She moves around with practiced ease, like she's falling back into an old routine. I don't know what Edward said to her out on the porch, but she hasn't even made an attempt to hole herself back up since coming inside.

She mutters to herself while sliding her chopped vegetables into the pot of boiling water on the stove. Her hands move with purpose as she works, but her thoughts still seem to be drifting somewhere else.

It's odd to see her in the daylight, her skin looks different, flushed and pink, like she is a corpse come back to life.

"What did Edward want with you?" I know it's pointless to ask, but I do it anyway. Like I suspected she would, Aunt Esme ignores my question.

"I'm going out tonight, girls, I suspect I won't be back until tomorrow morning. Do you think you can manage yourselves until then?" She pauses, waiting for an answer from us. It was posed as an honest question, but I find it ridiculous, since we've been taking care of ourselves successfully for a while now.

"I'm sure we can manage…" I say.

"We always do." Alice bites out and my head whips towards her. I hadn't thought her to be angry, but now that I reassess her tense posture, I can see that she is vibrating with unbridled fury.

There is a pause in my aunt's stirring and she looks back cautiously over her shoulder, something like guilt in her eyes when she looks at Alice, glances down at the locket around her neck, and then hurriedly looks away. "Good, then you should have no problem without me." I can almost hear her swallow around the lump in her throat, and I suspect she is blinking back tears.

Once dinner is over, Esme gets up and announces she is going to take a shower.

"That was…" I trail off, not knowing what to say after she is gone, and then look to Alice. Her head is down and her small shoulders are wracked with tremors. She is sobbing into her hands. I stand from my chair at the table and go to her quickly.

"Oh, Alice," I whisper delicately as I attempt to comfort her. I wrap my arms around her and lift her off of her chair and into my arms, holding her in my lap on the floor as she cries. I try whispering sweet reassurances to her, I run my hand through her hair, but it does nothing to keep her grief at bay. She pushes away from me, running up the stairs towards her room, and I Iet her go, feeling frustration well up inside me.

I intend to clean up the kitchen, but for some reason my feet take me unbidden to the entrance of my aunt's room. Her door is cracked in a tempting invitation and my hand comes up to push the door back the rest of the way.

I can hear the shower still going down the hall and I enter with a low curse, unable to quell my curiosity. What could she be doing in here all day, every day?

The room is dark and musty; thick, black curtains adorn the windows, and small streams of daylight push through, like grass growing on a paved road. The bed is messy and covers are thrown everywhere, open books strewn across its length. They are not novels, but a confusing assortment of phonebooks, planners, and maps. I feel the urge to look at what she has written in them, but restrain myself.

Upon the wall farthest from me is stretched a large map of the United States. There are push pins of all different colors and sizes stuck in different states and cities, notes and dates written in red, photos scattered around. I start to move toward the wall, but halt when I hear the shower shut off.

Just as I'm shutting the door, I hear Esme's soft footfalls coming down the hall. I spin around to look at her and as soon as she catches my gaze I know she knows, but she doesn't say anything. I can still see the guilt lurking in her eyes, and her nose is red like she's been crying.

"How is Alice?" She asks me. I feel pity well up within me but then also anger, anger that Esme is too weak to comfort her own daughter, and that she has left me ill-equipped to do the task myself.

"She's upset; what else could she be?" There is fire in my words and I see her flinch at this, but she does not retort.

I stand in her way, my back to her door. I do not make to move. She starts to speak, eyes flashing in annoyance, but I beat her to it.

"Where are you going tonight?" I ask cautiously, expecting her to ignore my question like she always does. But she surprises me with an answer.

"You already know."

I nod slowly, thinking. "Why, then?"

"I have no other choice but to go, Bella."

She is being cryptic on purpose and I frown, but move out of her way, knowing there is no use in questioning her any further.

While Esme is getting ready I clean up the kitchen until I hear the rumble of an approaching vehicle outside. I peek through the curtains and see a black car idling in the driveway below. The windows are tinted, but I spy tendrils of smoke floating through a crack in the driver's window. Edward must've gone back for a car.

"They must think I can't drive myself." Esme mutters and tuts behind me. I startle, not knowing she was there. She brushes past me but pauses with her hand on the doorknob. "Be safe tonight." And then she is gone.

I watch her from the window as she gets into the back seat of the black car. The window rolls up and the smoke disappears as they back out of the driveway.

Something isn't right.

My gut twists in unease as I watch them leave, but I try to ignore it and keep scrubbing. My hands drop the dishes with a splash into the sink as I growl with frustration and I make my decision. I grab my aunt's keys to her blue van, the only car we have, and decide to follow them to Aro's. Wet gravel crunches underneath my sneakers as I walk toward the van, keys jingling in my hands, and I pull my hood up as it starts to rain.

Starting the car, I go to check my rearview mirror and scream in fright. Alice's little face is smiling mischievously at me from the back seat. She laughs and it sounds like the tinkling of bells. Her eyes are still red-rimmed from earlier, but she looks like she has forgotten about it for now.

"This is a bad idea, Bella," she says, but I can see that she is dressed all in black, her long ebony hair tucked into the hood of her sweatshirt, so I gather she expects to go on this mission with me.

"I have to know what's going on."

"You're not leaving me here."

"Alice, it's going to be dangerous. I can't take you with me."

Her eyes flash. "I'm going."

I know it is pointless to argue. I groan in exasperation. "Buckle your seatbelt, then."

I'm trying to remember how we got here. My ears are ringing and my vision is fuzzy; my head pounds with pain and something warm is dripping onto the side of my cheek. All I know is I can hear someone screaming and it sounds like Alice.

"Bella! Bella!"

Just my name, over and over, in a panicked screech. I'm being moved by some unseen force, I can see my feet dragging across the floor underneath me, and something locks my arms behind me. I try to reassure Alice, but my tongue feels thick and the words won't come out.

My arms are released and I'm suddenly falling to the floor, luckily it's cushioned by some sort of rug. I feel Alice's hands on my face and she's crying, and I know now that this was a stupid idea. I hush her cries and look up at the monster of a man looming above that must've been carrying me.

"Found these two lurking around in a van outside, Master." His voice is a deep, low rumble.

An odd way to address somebody, I think. I hush Alice again, trying to hear the conversation. We are in a low-lit room, massive and richly decorated from what I can see. As my vision steadies and the world stops somersaulting, I follow the rug underneath us with my eyes all the way up to where it ends at a dark-wooded desk. A figure is perched on a chair behind it, and two others stand beside him, but I can't quite make out their faces from my angle.

I hear leather creak as the man behind the desk stands up to look at us. He wears a crisp black suit, fit very well, and probably very expensive. He is not a large man, but tall and skinny and he has long black hair that is tied up in something like a bun behind his head. I recognize him at once from the few times he has visited our house: Aro.

"Ah, I believe these are Esme's daughters."

"Are you quite sure, Aro?" The figure to his left hisses.

Alice stills suddenly beside me, her small body going stiff as a board and I look over at her. I see her fingers touch the locket around her neck and she quiets down, but her grey eyes darken and never leave Aro's face.

Aro's face is very controlled, but I see a brief flash of annoyance before it's gone. "I recognize the little one from years ago, but I don't know the other girl, I'll admit. She does seem familiar, though."

"Go get Esme, Felix. She will be able to identify them." This comes from Aro's right, a raspy, brittle voice that's barely audible, but it carries such a weight behind it that the man that carried me, Felix, obeys immediately.

He reappears with Esme and, I notice with a start, Edward. My eyes are trained on him as Alice's are still on Aro. He hasn't looked up at me yet, but I can tell he knows I'm here by the way his body moves unconsciously towards me. I wonder why he ignores me, but then his eyes connect with mine and I see the absolute fury swimming in brilliant dark emerald. It takes my breath away.

Our eyes have a silent conversation and as he takes inventory of every part of me, paying special attention to the side of my head. I touch my fingers to where his eyes are trained and pull back quickly, hissing as I look at the sticky, red blood that now coats them. His eyes are black now and at first I think he's angry at me for being such a careless idiot, but then his eyes shoot to Aro, and I know that's not the case.

"What is the meaning of this, Aro?" He barks. "You told me you only wanted Esme."

Absolute silence. And then.

"I did indeed, but it is apparent that we had two tag-a-longs to this party. I was going to question Esme as to who this one is," he pointed to me, "but it appears you already know, Edward. So why don't you share with us?"

More silence. This time I break it.

"I can speak for myself, you bastard." I can tell everyone is shocked at my words and I feel the tension in the room grow ever tighter. Edward starts to speak but Aro holds up a hand.

"Very well, then. Tell us who you are, my dear."

"No one, Aro. She is no one of importance," Edward interjects and I feel a stab of rejection eat at my heart.

"Give us your name, girl!" This comes from the left of Aro again and I flinch.

"Bella."

"Bella what?" The voice asks in a scathing tone.

"Swan. Bella Swan."

Aro's mouth drops open, just for a moment, and then he breaks out into a sly grin that is very unsettling. Edward drops his head and his hand comes to the bridge of his nose. I don't break eye contact to look at him though.

"Is that so?" He laughs, high-pitched and sinister. It sends shivers up my spine. "Well, it looks like the solution to my problem has just been dropped into my lap. If I had known Charlie and Renee's daughter has been hiding under my nose this entire time…"

"Your dealings are with me, Aro. Leave the girl out of it." Esme's voice sounds shaky and unsure to my ears. Aro pauses to look at her, and his eyes narrow.

I feel confused and the mention of my parents' names shocks me into silence. What did they have to do with any of this?

"My parents? What about my parents?"

Aro laughs again. I'm starting to really despise the sound.

"She doesn't know? Oh, my dear girl."

"Stop, Aro! You have no right to tell her!" Esme shouts in panic.

"Tell me."


	3. Chapter 3

Thanks for reviewing, I really appreciate it!

Aro comes out from behind his desk and takes to one knee in front of us, leaning down to look me in the eyes. I realize with a gasp that the eyes I had thought to be light brown are actually a dark maroon.

"Your eyes-," slips out of my mouth before I can help myself.

Aro's smile widens but he says nothing of my comment. Instead, he brings a hand to cup my face, trailing a finger along one of my cheekbones. I cringe away from his cold touch, but have too much pride to actually pull away. I maintain eye contact with him, but instead of irritating him, it only serves to make him more amused.

"Yes, you do look remarkably like your father. Not much like your mother however."

"You knew them?"

He laughs again, loud and long. "Knew them? Your father worked for me for several years, girl."

"No!" I barely hear Esme through the pounding in my head.

This is too much to comprehend, too much at one time.

"Worked for you? What are you talking about? My dad was Chief of Police, he would never have…" I trail off and then look behind me at Esme. Edward has his hand wrapped around her wrist, loosely restraining her from coming over to me. She doesn't look to be struggling very hard, but her eyes have a desperate look to them and I cringe.

"Ah yes, your father was quite useful in that aspect. It was nice to have the man running the entire police department of Forks working for me, as dim-witted a mortal as he was." My mind registers his odd use of the term 'mortal'. "Your parents have been giving me some trouble lately, Bella. More trouble than I thought they would be able to cause me. Your Aunt Esme has been helping me track them down, and once we find them, I think you'll be my perfect bait to bring them home."

I can't find the words I want to say, my brain buzzing with shock.

Aro ignores me then, looking behind me. "Edward, take Bella and Alice to Carlisle's with you tonight. I want to see them back here in the morning, both of them. You know what happens if they're not here. And I need to speak with you as well. Apparently there are things you've been keeping from your master, hm?"

A shiver runs down my spine at Aro's tone and I wonder at his words.

I can't help but glance at Edward as we walk up his long, familiar dirt driveway. Alice is holding tight onto my hand, telling me about the book she's reading, and what dreams she had last night, but I can barely hear her over the roar of my own thoughts. I can tell she's trying not to think of her, because she's fidgeting with her locket like she always does when she's thinking of Mary.

The two-story at the end of the driveway is white with green shutters and a wrap-around porch. It's still a very pretty house, though the paint is worn and dirty, and the porch sags with neglect in some places. It's definitely not what I expected from the dark and brooding boy next to me, which makes me wonder all the more.

Edward is smoking again, white clouds trailing from his nostrils. He crushes the bud under his boot quickly as the front door of his house opens. I look over to see a man standing on the porch, waiting for us, his arm resting on the white beam of the entryway. He's very handsome with his short blonde hair and piercing ice-blue eyes that somehow manage to be warm. He looks young but there are wrinkles at the corners of his eyes and mouth that betray his age. I recognize him as one of the doctors at Forks General Hospital, Dr. Cullen, and I wonder what he's doing at Edward's house.

He smiles and waves us in, the dim porch light illuminating the welcoming smile that graces his face. I can't help but smile back, though it's the last thing I feel like doing right now. He pulls Edward into an embrace when he's close enough.

"You've been gone for too long, son. I feel like I haven't seen you in a week."

"Aro's orders." Edward says, glancing at Alice and I. "This is Alice and Bella, Carlisle. Carlisle is my god-father." Edward explains to us.

Carlisle's smile wavers for a moment at Edward's mention of Aro, but then he turns to me and his eyes sparkle with recognition.

"Bella, dear, I haven't seen you around the hospital in a while. You're usually a regular customer." He chuckles, not impolitely.

I blush. "I guess I've grown out of my clumsiness."

"I daresay you haven't, judging by your head wound. Do you want me to take a look at that?"

Alice snorts in amusement behind me, catching Carlisle's attention.

"I see you've brought your little cousin with you, what a delight! We can all have dinner together, then, I was just making pasta. Do you like spaghetti and meatballs, Alice?"

She nods at him, eyes cautiously bright and skips through the door with a quick look over her shoulder back at me.

"I'll be right in." I nod to her.

I turn back to the discussion at hand.

"Bella took a blow from Felix to the head, Carlisle. She needs it looked at." Edward says.

I had forgotten about the hit I took and I graze my fingers over the spot on my head, wincing. Edward hisses and I look over at him curiously. "No, I'm fine. I just need somewhere to wash the blood off my face." I reply, not able to take my eyes off of him.

"You fainted, Bella, I don't think that qualifies as _fine_." Edward scowls at me, his stare bright as an emerald flame.

"I said I'm fine, _Masen_. I fainted because of the blood, not a concussion."

"Why do you have to be so difficult?" He growls.

"Excuse me? You're the one being difficult!" I hiss back at him and I realize suddenly we've stepped closer to each other. His heavy breaths stretch the black t-shirt he has on and I want to fist my hand in it and bring his face down to mine. His eyes darken as they zero in on my lips and I can't help but remember the angry kiss he bestowed on me earlier today. I bite my lower lip and feel the blush suffusing my cheeks.

Carlisle coughs and we both jump, turning away from each other quickly.

"Bathroom is the second door on your right." He says, looking amused.

I thank him and hurry inside the door, wondering if maybe I do have a concussion. My cheeks are still warm after I'm done wiping the blood off of my face, so I splash some cold water on myself, trying to get the embarrassing color to go away.

After dinner, Carlisle keeps Alice entertained with his library. She seems fascinated at all of the volumes that cover his shelves; some look very old and are in cases covered with glass. Alice spends a particularly long time gazing at these.

I volunteer to clean up the kitchen and start on the dishes while Edward stares at my back from the opposite counter space. When I finish with them, I reluctantly turn around.

He averts his eyes, his foot twitching and his long fingers itching to reach for the pack of cigarettes in his pocket.

"Did you know, about my parents?" I ask him, looking at the tile on the floor. It's cracked in some places and I scuff at it with the toe of my shoe.

"Yes." He says simply and I hear him run his long fingers through his hair, though I don't look at him.

I say nothing, but nod my head.

"Esme thought it best to keep you in the dark…"

I scoff and lock eyes with him, feeling ire rising hot in my chest. "All those times you were there on orders from Aro, you were talking with her about my parents? _My_ parents? And you thought I didn't deserve to know?"

"Esme thought it would hurt you too much to know the truth."

"Has she contacted them?" I cry. "Has she talked to them without telling me?"

The noise of Carlisle and Alice chatting upstairs has ceased. Edward goes to the kitchen door and I follow him out to the back porch. We're silent for a minute. I try to keep my tears at bay.

"Has she talked to them?"

Edward shakes his head and I don't know whether to feel relieved or disappointed. He pinches the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger with a sigh.

"But she knows where they are. It's taken her a while to find them."

I turn away from him and sit on the edge of the porch, letting my head fall into my hands.

"I can't believe this. I thought they were decent people. I mean, sure, parents that ran out on their daughter, but to be involved with Aro?" I let it slip out and then realize my mistake. I look up at him. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean—."

He stops me with a wave of his hand. "Don't say it, Bella. You're right. I'm no good for you. You shouldn't even be involved in this right now."

"The hell I shouldn't be, they're my parents!" I shout. "And what is it with you, Masen? Do you tell all the girls you kiss that you're no good for them?"

He growls and slaps his hands against the porch railing before spinning around and stalking towards me. "I'm trying to keep you safe, Bella, and you're not making it easy." He's so close to me now, if he takes one more step our chests will touch, and I don't know whether to be afraid or not.

"I don't understand you, Edward." I whisper and his eyes seem to soften at the sound of his name.

He turns away from me, his voice quiet now. "You and Alice need to get out of town. I'll talk to Carlisle. He can find you some place to stay while I go back for Esme."

"No. No way. You heard Aro, I'm his bait. He'll kill you if you show up without me tomorrow." I argue. "Alice should go with Carlisle, I'm staying with you."

"I will not allow you to sacrifice yourself, Bella!"

"You don't get to tell me what I can and cannot do!"

Carlisle opens the door, breaking our argument as we turn to look at him.

"I'm setting you and Alice up in the guestroom for now, Bella." He turns to Edward. "If you could get the sheets out, Edward, I would like to talk to Bella for a moment."

Edward goes inside reluctantly, letting the screen door slam behind him, and Carlisle turns to look at me. "I know you've had a very trying day, Bella, and I know you are probably wondering what kind of people your parents are since you heard the truth from Aro."

I nod slowly, wondering where he's going with this.

"I knew your parents, Bella." He leans up against the railing, looking back into the forest that surrounds his backyard. "They were good people, and I think you should know that. Your father made many mistakes and got caught up with the wrong people, the wrong influences, like my son has, but he wasn't a bad person."

"You knew my parents?" I ask.

"Fairly well."

"Do you know why they left me here?"

He sighs. "You were young when they left and your parents were on the run from Aro at that time. I can only assume that they were hoping Esme would be able to give you a better life than what they could offer. Though they obviously didn't consider the danger they would be leaving their family in." I thought of Mary and felt a pang of grief hit me.

"Why now? They left when I was 10 years old, why now is Aro trying to track them down?" I ask Carlisle.

"From what I've heard, Aro has been trying to find them for several years, but only now has Esme gotten a good lead on them. I'm not sure what they've done recently, but whatever it is, it has made him angrier than I've ever seen him."

We are silent for a moment, but something is still bothering me.

"I can't believe Esme would do this to her own sister."

Carlisle sighs heavily, and looks over at me with pained eyes. "Aro holds Alice over Esme's head. Had he known of you earlier, I'm sure a threat would have been made against you as well. There is nothing she wouldn't do for you two. Contrary to what you might believe, she is only trying to keep you safe."

I say nothing, thinking of how many times I've heard those words today, and how very unsafe I feel.

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